Easter Egg Hunt
by PuttingPenToPaperx
Summary: Ziva finds an anonymous note in her drawer with a seemingly decorated egg drawn on it. What will following this Easter Egg trail lead to? FIRST STORY! - Reviews would be lovely, thank you! :
1. Egg 1  Be at?

The day had started off like any other, except this day was lacking any kind of enthusiasm from the NCIS agents. The last day all of them had had off was on Christmas, and it was just typical that this year, Easter was late. The long, paperwork-filled days made Easter seem like light years away.

The soft spring sun was inching its way through the clouds, ones which seemed like they threatened rain, but the soft golden rays managed to hold back that unavoidable downpour for now. The huge windows to Tony's left filtered the light, making it perfect working conditions. The paperwork on his desk seemed to cover the entire wooden surface and it was at times like these where he regretted those few nights off he'd chosen over this written chore. It had been maybe been two hours since his effort-filled ascent out of bed, and his wrist felt like it was about to fall off with all the writing he had completed. However, despite the early morning hours, pages of tedious writing and mountains more to start, the smile which danced across his lips had managed to stay put throughout.

This had not gone unnoticed by the Israeli assassin who sat opposite the Italian agent. "Something…pleasing you, Tony? Memories of last night?" Her big brown eyes stayed focused upon her own paperwork but the small hint of a tease slipped through in her slightly accented voice.

Hearing Ziva's voice break the silence which had seemed to accumulate, Tony looked up, his smile seeming to widen, "Firstly, thank you for insinuating I still have my way with women, and secondly, yes, something is very…pleasing, to use your word."

"Not a woman, hm?" She questioned in reply.

The Senior agent considered his answer, "A little bit…"

A confused look slipped across the Israeli's features as she processed her partner's answer, "A little? I do not follow…"

A small chuckle slipped past Tony's lips, her confusion becoming very satisfying all of a sudden, "You'll see, Zi. You'll see." His soft green eyes glanced over to the ex-Mossad officer, a small sigh of happiness leaving his mouth.

With a small shake of her head, Ziva returned her focus back to the small amount of paperwork she had left to do. As she wrote the last few sentences of her report, she leant down to her bottom drawer, pulling it open in order to retrieve her stapler. For the second time in ten minutes, her eyes squinted in confusion as her vision laid upon a small post-it note which was stuck to the bottom of her drawer. Peeling it off the surface, she sat back up straight and read it;

"_Ziva, be at…" _ That was all that was written, but with a small picture of what looked like a decorated egg in the bottom left corner. This concept was alien to the Israeli native, and being surrounded by Americans, surely they'd know. "Tony, McGee…What is this?" She held up the note, pointing to the child-like drawing.

"It looks like an Easter egg." McGee stated, looking across the bull pen, grateful for the break, even if it was only for a moment.

"An Easter egg? What is that?" Ziva questioned, still not used to this seemingly American tradition.

Tony chuckled, taking the opportunity to lean back in his chair, propping his feet up on the edge of his desk, "An Easter egg, little ninja, is a small chocolate egg which we adults usually give to kids on Easter. Sometimes we'd hide them and there'd be like some sort of trail that they follow. Think "Hansel and Gretl" but with chocolate."

The analogy helped Ziva understand the concept, but not why there was a random note stuck to the bottom of her drawer, "So…somebody expects me to follow a trail of these?"

DiNozzo shrugged his shoulders, "Perhaps. Welcome to an American Easter there, Zee-vah." A cheek grin slipped across his lips as he crossed his fingers against the back of his head, leaning back slightly further. He tried his best not to laugh as he watched his partner get up from her desk, cross the bullpen, as if she was about to leave, "Woahh, Zi! Where you goin'?"

"Follow the trail. I want to know who left this note!" Ziva said, as if it was completely obvious. Besides, she could do with the break. Unlike her Italian partner, she had been there since 5am.

Rather than argue, Tony simple smiled his classic DiNozzo smile, and let his eyes watch her as she left on her Easter egg finding mission. Once Ziva was out of sight, the senior agent pulled open his own drawer, pulled off the top post-it note off the orange coloured pile, stood up and headed over to Ziva's desk. He surveyed the surface, trying to find somewhere hidden to hide it. Turning around, he bumped his hip against the scanner. Lifting the lid, he pressed the sticky side against the bottom side of the device, reading it once more;

"…_Apartment 12, 34__th__ Street at…" _He knew Ziva had been to his apartment before, but this was 3 floors too low. What was a small hike up three floors? The day had only just begun and the hunt had also begun.


	2. The Address

Being an ex-Mossad officer, Ziva was more than used to ambiguous situations but this wasn't exactly fitting in with the 'norm', but then again, when was any day at the office normal? Who on Earth would be slipping her notes, and sending her on a, what did Tony call it, "Easter egg hunt"? This seemingly childish tradition was just that, for children, not adults but not even the Israeli could deny it was intriguing and somewhat fun. It almost took her back to the days in the woods of Tel Aviv and Carmel where she and her brother, Ari, would spend hours on end wandering around and looking for clues to find a way out. Evoking those childhood memories was pleasurable for a moment or two, until those final moments she ever saw her brother came zooming back.

In her mission to find more notes, the Israeli woman headed down to her locker in the on-base gym. It was a place she went often, usually at 5am, and if this mystery Note Hider had any game plan, there'd be a note in there. Or was that too obvious? Slipping her hand into her jacket pocket, she retrieved the small metal key, slid it into the lock and turned it clockwise. As expected, the door opened, revealing her gym clothes, her toiletry bag, a few case files but no note… With a small humph, she grabbed the water bottle which stood at the front of her locker, took a quick swig before closing the metal door after the bottle had been replaced to its original place.

Meanwhile, up in the bull-pen, Tony carefully lowered the scanner lid, leaving the note nicely hidden out of sight. So far his plan was going well, and nobody had guessed it was him yet. Yet..

On the other side of the bullpen, McGee cleared his throat , looking suspiciously at the senior agent, "So you're the mystery note leaver?" He questioned.

Spinning around on his heel, Tony exhaled quickly. He had completely forgotten that the Junior Agent had still been in a room and now witnessed him leaving the trail of paper for his partner. His mission had been uncovered, by McGee of all people, but there was no worry in Tony's mind. After all, it was only a small game and McGee didn't have to know what the end prize was; only he knew that. "Yes, McProbie. Great investigative skills there, Probie."

"There a reason why?" Tim asked, finding this as a quick excuse to take a break from the mountain of work he had left.

"There is…" Tony replied, not giving the actual reason. Instead he sauntered back to his desk casually, taking a seat. Thankfully, the junior agent had no spare time to question the Italian more since the Israeli, the subject of this little hunt, made her way back into the bullpen. Tony's eyes lifted up from his paperwork, watching as she sat behind her desk, her gorgeous brown eyes drowned in confusion and intrigue. "Lost the scent of the trail, Ziva?"

Shaking the thoughts from her mind, the Israeli looked across the bullpen to her partner, "I just do not understand who would expect me to follow pieces of paper. I mean, what is the point?" She questioned, trying to find out more about this American tradition.

Taking a moment to consider his answer, Tony soon came up with an answer which wouldn't give away his master plan. He knew just how smart Ziva was, and the slightest slip in his words would expose his desires. "Well, when we Americans do this kinda thing with children, they usually get a little something at the end of the trail."

"Like what?" The Israeli tilted her head to the side slightly, fascinated by the information the Italian was relaying to her, her dark brown hair falling easily over her shoulder.

"Like a…little chocolate or something, or something fun to do. A treat." Tony said simply, silently admiring just how beautiful she looked. So relaxed and intrigued by the trail he was secretly sending her on.

Ziva considered the answer she had been given, "So, that is the purpose of this trail?" A small smile tugged at her lips as she thought about it, "A little bit of fun at the end…" She murmured quietly, a small, uncharacteristic giggle slipping past her lips.

"Better get on and find the rest of those eggs then." Letting his gaze linger a little longer than intended, Tony soon managed to get back to his paperwork. He knew just how he'd get her to find his next note in the sequence he had planned. Standing from his seat, he grabbed a few sheets of paper from the file he had been working on beforehand, he spun around to his own scanner.

Pretending to press at a few random buttons, Tony let out a rather loud, frustrated sigh. He lightly kicked the bottom of it with the side of his foot, groaning. After a few minutes of dramatic frustration, he crossed the space between his desk and Ziva's. "Do you mind scanning these for me? Mine seems to have broken and Jack in maintenance owes me a favour, so I'm going to get him to fix it." He smiled charmingly, a glint shining in his emerald eyes, knowing it'd win her over.

"Sure." Ziva said politely, taking the paper from him as she stood, "It'll be waiting for you when you're back." By the time she had turned to complete the favour for Tony, the Italian had disappeared and out of the corner of her eye, she saw him running to get the elevator which had just opened its doors. A smile danced over her lips and with a small shake of her head, she lifted the scanner lid. To her surprise, a little piece of paper, one similar to the one she had found earlier, lay there, perfectly in the centre. She glanced around her surroundings before picking the paper up, reading its words. The address seemed to ring a bell, but she wasn't quite sure where. Obviously, someone had plans for that evening and if they had managed to get to her desk, they were much closer than she had first anticipated.

Although Jack in maintenance did owe Tony a favour, his machinery behind his desk was in perfect working order and he had bigger plans on his mind. Armed with his next piece of the trail, the Italian headed down to the on-base gym, a place he knew Ziva spent a lot of her time after work. It'd be perfect; the last piece of the puzzle would soon be in place.


	3. When!

The finals piece of the puzzle was in place, well, the last piece he could hide around the work place anyway. It was now taped to the outside of Ziva's locker in the on-base gym, its bright colours impossible to miss. As Tony made his way back up to the bullpen, he could not wipe the happy grin off his lips. He'd rarely seen Ziva so inquisitive about such a trivial thing and he was sure that what he had planned at the end of it would live up to her expectations. If he was totally honest, he hadn't expected this little hunt to be quite as successful as it was. At first, he was only planning on hiding maybe one or two notes on their floor, but now he had sent the little Israeli all over the building in search of the next piece. Two things were for sure; It was far more interesting than paperwork, and it would definitely pay off in the end.

As he reached the floor he worked on, Tony stepped off the elevator as the metal doors opened, exposing an array of people working at their respective desks. He wandered through the hallways as he headed towards his desk, the sight of photocopied paperwork piled in his desk coming into view. As he passed his partner's desk, Tony gave her a small smile, "Thanks for doing that for me," He said in gratitude. When he got no reply, he stopped himself just in front of her desk, his eyes studying her.

Ziva sat at her desk, various pieces of paper surrounding her, but she held the most recent piece of the puzzle in her hands, dark brown eyes completely focused on trying to remember the address it had written on it. It took her a good minute to feel the Italian's gaze resting upon her, causing her to break her intense gaze on the words and avert her gaze to him, "Oh...no problem."

"What's that?" Tony questioned, knowing secretly what it already was.

The Israeli let out a small sigh, giving a small shake of her head, "I found it when you asked me to copy your paperwork. It has this address on it and I know that I know it, but I just cannot remember where from." The hint of frustration in her voice managed to slip through unintentionally.

Swiftly, Tony whisked round the back of her desk, peering over her shoulder to share the look at the new found clue, "Nope, don't know it." He lied, managing to keep a straight face, "Ex boyfriend? Old friend?" He suggested, wanting to seem as if he was really interested in finding out who lived at the address.

"I don't think so. It's just so familiar somehow." Ziva repeated. Sighing in frustration, she placed the piece of card down on her desk, "I suppose I will just have to find out later."

A small chuckle left Tony's lips, admiring how seriously she was taking this hunt he was sending her on. "Which is when?"

Ziva opened her mouth to answer him until she realised she didn't know. All she had was an address, no time or date. It all seemed a little bit suspicious to her, and something about it was making her adrenaline flow quicker than usual. Usually, she would have just ignored it and not followed the instructions, but there was an element about this particular time which enticed her and made her want to find out more, and especially who was leaving her these clues, "I don't know. That hasn't been revealed yet."

The Italian grinned, making his way back over to his desk, taking a seat behind the structure, "Well, looks like that will be the next piece you have to find, little ninja," The nickname seemed to just roll effortlessly off his tongue as his gentle eyes rested on her from across the bullpen, "I wonder who it could be…" he thought out loud, tilting his head to the side as if in deep thought, "You'll have to fill me in on all the details. And I mean, _all _the details," He gave her a cheeky grin, followed by a wink before his eyes travelled to the small clock in the right corner of his computer screen. Nearly shooting out of his chair, Tony announced his departure, "Home time, kids!" He said, the levels of happiness in his voice higher than they had ever been throughout the day.

The senior agent holstered his badge and gun on his belt at his hip before flinging his backpack over his left shoulder, using his hand to keep it in place. His attention wandered over to his partner as he headed over to the elevator which would soon allow him to leave, "Aren't you coming?" he questioned.

The Israeli leant back in her chair slightly, her eyes lifting to meet with his own, "I think I'm just going to stay for a bit. Besides, there is still one piece left to find, yes?"

With a smile dancing across his lips, Tony gave a nod, "I suppose so. Get those spidey senses tingling, Zee-vah, or you could be here a while…" With a final DiNozzo style smile, Tony turned on his heel and lightly jogged after the elevator which was just about to shut its doors. Thankfully, he made it inside without crashing into any of the people who already occupied the confined space inside.

Instead of carrying on with her final pieces of paperwork which she had intended to finish in her overtime, the Israeli woman stood from her desk, her eyes narrowing slightly as she surveyed her surroundings, looking for possible places for this last piece to be. She checked in conference rooms, restrooms and was even tempted to check in MTAC but still she found nothing. By now it was getting late, the outside light fading into dusk and Ziva had to just accept defeat. Somehow, the last clue had eluded her and got the better of her investigative skills. Ziva packed up her things on her desk, placing a few necessary items into her backpack before she placed it over her shoulder, heading towards the elevator. Maybe a light round in the gym would take her mind off things.

Just as Ziva pressed the button on the wall to summon the elevator, she felt her cell phone vibrate in her pocket. Shifting the weight of her back pack, her hand reached into her pocket and retrieved the cellular device. Opening the new message she had, her chocolate eyes widened slightly as she read the message; _ Be there at 8pm. _The number was unknown, somebody she didn't already have I her contacts list, which caused her to knit her brown together in confusion. Her attention was soon diverted to the elevator as its mechanical 'ding' echoed out. Stepping inside, Ziva offered a polite smile to the two other employees already inside before she pressed the button of her desired floor.

Now that she had received that text, and from somebody she didn't even know, it caused her to rethink her suspect list. At first she had thought it was somebody who she knew well, due to the fact they had been able to get into her personal work place to place the second clue, but now the unknown number caused her to re-evaluate this assumption. It really was quite confusing, and it was sending her thoughts all over the place. As the silver doors opened at her desired floor, the Israeli woman stepped off and headed into the changing room to find her locker. When her eyes fixed on her locker, her lips parted and she nearly stopped in her tracks at the sight of yet another piece. Surely there was no more information she could have, right?

Slowly approaching her locker, Ziva peeled off the colourful piece of decorated paper, reading the words again, "_Actually, make that 7:30."_

Glancing at her watch and back to the card she now held in her hands, Ziva scrapped the thought of a little exercise; she only had twenty minutes to get to this address and finally uncover who had been sending her on an Easter egg hunt all day.


	4. What Is Life Like?

Tony had managed to borrow an old fraternity brother's phone to send the text to Ziva, hopefully sending her off the trail a little bit. He had begun to think that she may have been on to him, but hopefully his little diversion will have thrown the Israeli off path. By now he was in his apartment, tidying away all the coloured card, scissors and felt tip pens he had used the previous night to create his clues. It'd reminded him of his childhood when he used to spend hours creating various craft items and, in essence, he was attempting to bring childhood back and not just for himself. From the questions he had received from his partner about this tradition and the holiday, it was obvious that Ziva hadn't experienced things like this as a child, not that he had expected her to. Giving her a taste of American culture and tradition was something he enjoyed immensely, and having a childhood element of sending her on a trail made it even more enjoyable for the both of them.

After discarding the various snippings of card into the trash and tidying away the rest of his craft materials, Tony quickly changed out of his work clothes and into something more comfortable but still reasonable smart. Now dressed in a crisp white shirt with the tope few buttons undone and the collar left open, and a pair of quite smart jeans, all the Italian could do now was wait for his partner to find the end of her trail.

Ziva navigated her car through the various roads and streets of the city, looking for the first indication of the address she had been given. Her eyes kept glancing to the time, counting down the minutes until she would finally be able to find out who this mystery person was. She had to admit, it had been rather exciting being introduced to this trail and finding the clues hidden around her workplace had made the day far more amusing than usual.

The sky's blue slowly started fading into a warm orange as the sun started to lower its light over the city, signalling that the dark of night would soon be approaching. Finally, the sign for the road number Ziva needed came into her vision and she turned her vehicle to the left, her eyes now searching for the building in need. The area still looked so familiar; a reasonably quiet neighbourhood with all the essential stores on one road, far enough away from the city centre to be safe at all times. About half way down the road, Ziva slammed her foot down on the break as she pulled her car up outside the apartment building she had been in search of. Denying the engine any power by removing the key from the ignition, the Israeli slid out of the car, swiftly kicking the driver's door into place with her heel. Climbing up the few steps which led into the building, she pushed open the door and started her ascent to the first floor where she assumed apartment 12 would be.

The hallways were softly illuminated by lights placed strategically along the walls created a warm ambiance, the perfect place for a home. Each door was painted a forest green with gold numbers indicating who occupied them. 9, 10, 11…12. Ziva was finally stood outside her final destination, but despite reaching the end, a look of confusion flooded her dark eyes. Taped to the door was yet another piece of decorated card. Nobody else was around, so Ziva extended her hand and peeled off the clue, allowing her eyes to drop down to its word as she held it in her hands.

_Woops, wrong apartment. Try going one floor up. Life is always like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get._

Ziva couldn't help the smile which danced easily across her lips, turning on her heel as she retraced her steps down the hallway, her attention focused entirely upon the words she had just read. Of course, after having been in America for nearly six years and working with Tony for that amount of time, she had heard that quote many times. She knew the movie, the actor, everything and, of course, there'd only be one person who would put that on a clue.

Within moments she was stood in the exact same place except one floor higher, her gaze now locked on the door before her. Coming to the conclusion that there were no other pieces of the puzzle hidden around the vicinity of the apartment, the Israeli woman raised her hand, knocking her knuckles lightly against the hard wooden surface of the door.

Hearing the knock on his front door, Tony couldn't deny the smile which instantly spread over his lips. Grabbing the final piece of the trail off of the kitchen table, the Italian walked through his apartment and as he came up to his front door, he twisted the doorknob, pulling the door towards him, "Well hello there, Miss David…" He said, grinning.

"It's been you? All this time?" Ziva questioned, still finding it hard to believe she didn't uncover his plan quicker.

His grin grew ever bigger as he nodded, "All me,"

"But the text…It wasn't your number," Ziva stated, confusion in her tone as she tried to wrap her mind around how he had put this all together.

With a small shrug of his shoulders, Tony chuckled, "Borrowed a brother's phone. Couldn't send it from mine, or you would have known. Got to keep you guessing, little ninja," His emerald eyes shined with happiness, seeing how surprised his partner was. "But, like with every Easter egg hunt, there has to be some sort of prize, so…" Tony let his last sentence hang, adding a little bit of playful tension before he held out a small chocolate egg, "I said this is what we do for children, so I did it for you and it looks like I have found this ninja's weakness. Fooled by chocolate…"

A soft laugh leapt out of Ziva's throat as she accepted the chocolate from him, "Well, Tom Hanks said…Life is like a box of chocolates, you never do know what you're going to get,"

_Alrighty folks, there's my first story! I'd love for some reviews so I know what to do better next time, so go ahead, press that little button! :)_


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